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Closet
A closet (especially in North American usage) is a small and enclosed space, a cabinet, or a cupboard in a house or building used for general storage or hanging clothes. A closet for food storage is usually referred to as a pantry. A closet, through French from Latin clausum, "closed" began life in the 17th century as a small private room, often behind a bedroom, to which a man or woman could retire, for privacy, reading, or enjoyment of personal works of art: for this usage, see Cabinet (room). Modern closets can be built into the walls of the house during construction so that they take up no apparent space in the bedroom, or they can be a large, free-standing piece of furniture designed for clothing storage, in which case they are often called a wardrobe or armoire. Closets are often built under stairs, thereby using awkward space that would otherwise go unused. In current British usage, a "wardrobe" can also be built-in, and the word "cupboard" can be used to refer to a closet. In Elizabethan and Middle English, closet referred to a larger room in which a person could sit and read in private, but now refers to a small room in generalAskOxford: closet. In Indian usage, a closet often refers to a toilet. This probably originated from the word water closet, which refers to a flush toilet. In North America, chests, trunks and wall-mounted pegs typically provided storage prior to World War II. Built-in wall closets were uncommon and where they did exist, they tended to be small and shallow. Following World War II, however, deeper, more generously sized closets were introduced to new housing designs, which proved to be very attractive to buyers. It has even been suggested that the closet was a major factor in peoples' migration to the suburbs. Types of closets *'Broom closet:' A narrow floor-to-ceiling space for the storage of lengthy items. *'Coat closet:' A coat closet is a closet of a house where people store their hoods, jackets and coats. A coat closet is typically located in the entryway, so that it is close to the front door. *'Linen closet:' A tall, narrow closet, typically located in or near bathrooms and/or bedrooms. Such a closet contains shelves used to hold towels, washcloths, sheets, and toiletries. *'Spear closet:' An architectural slang term for a small, oddly shaped, "left over" space, whether actually used as a closet or not. *'Utility closet:' A closet used for permanently housing appliances, most commonly the heating/cooling unit and water heater, especially in apartments where they cannot be put in a garage, attic, or basement. *'Walk-in closet:' A closet large enough to walk inside to store clothes on two or three sides. They may have lighting, mirrors, and flooring distinct from adjacent rooms. *'Wall closet:' A very shallow closet closed off from a room by a curtain or folding doors, with only enough depth to hang clothes or store them folded on shelves. *A water closet (WC) is not a storage closet but a flush toilet. The term comes from the British English definition of a closet as a small private room. In this case, it was a small private room with running water. References Category:Home Category:Cabinets Category:Clothing containers Category:Rooms